The iPod is officially the miracle device of the 21st century. Not only does it let us carry around our entire music collections in our pockets, but it has also saved an infantryman's life in Iraq, and led to the rescue of not one but two groups of lost skiers.

So what does this life-saving media player do for an encore? Control lightning and decrease the effects of electrocution, of course! Sure, stopping bullets and signaling rescue teams is cool, but redirecting a 3,000-volt lightning bolt? Now, that is impressive.

As a thunderstorm shook Rayleigh, England Monday night, 14-year-old Sophie Frost and her boyfriend Mason Billington were hiding under a tree (not the best idea) when Frost was suddenly struck by lightning. Amazingly, the bolt passed through the headphones dangling from her neck, and, as a result, shot across her body instead of through it. According to the Times Online, Frost suffered burns across her neck, chest, and leg, but survived the strike. The jolt did render her unconscious, but Billington, relatively unscathed, carried her out to the road where a passerby drove them to the hospital.

For all you bathroom American Idols, an Italian company has just the product to take your morning routine to the next level. As profiled in DVICE, Stocco's Maitre bathroom mirror connects to an MP3 player, plays music through a set of built-in speakers, and features touchscreen controls on its surface. That's right; this product helps you sing and groom yourself at the same time. It also features a clock, an internal or external light, a de-misting feature, and, oddly enough, a barometer.

While the design is sleek, modern, and innovative, we wonder how this product would fare in our bathrooms. The average bathroom can get fairly messy from time-to-time, what with toothpaste, soap, and hair products splattering on every surface. While the mirror might be able to hold up, it concerns us that our MP3 player would remain exposed to the elements.

Maybe we'll just stick with our iPod dock and our regular old mirror, whose only special function is to remind us of how much we've aged. [From: DVICE, via LikeCool]

We all like our gadgets. Still, even though we can't imagine our morning commute without our trusty MP3 player, there's no way we're risking our lives for it. Then again, we're not 16-years old.

A Tampa teenage girl was almost killed on Tuesday when she tried to save her beloved iPod from certain doom. While crossing the street, she noticed she had dropped her iPod Nano in the road. Instead of saying a quiet prayer for the health of her musical companion, she blindly rushed into oncoming traffic -- this, we imagine, greatly dissatisfied the driver of the pickup truck driver that subsequently plowed into her, leaving her with a broken leg and untold damage to the truck.

So remember kids/adults: An iPod is replaceable, even in this economy. If you have to... just let it go. [From:Twirlit]

Turns out those lovable little earbuds may deliver more than pleasant sound waves.

According to a support bulletin issued by Apple, the cans are a possible conduit for static electricity. The company has issued some tips to keep the voltage down--which essentially tell you to stop using the player.

Among the dangerous conditions are dry or windy environments (sorry U.S. Southwest, Midwest, and coastal zones). Motion is also a troublemaker, so Apple advises against exercising with the iPod or frequently taking it in and out of your pocket, especially if you are wearing synthetic fabrics such as nylon. Sure, who does that with their iPod anyway?

While certainly not the most expensive iPod we've ever seen, the limited edition Prince Opus iPod touch is definitely amongst the priciest. Sold only as part of an ultra rare kit that includes a luxurious book of Prince photographs from Kraken Opus, this touch (of unknown capacity) comes preloaded with 40 minutes of "exclusive" footage along with a live soundtrack from 'Indigo Nights.' Of course, it's also doused in purple and splashed with Prince's symbol 'round back, but even with only 950 kits available, we still say the $2,100 price tag is far too lofty. Hate to break it to ya, Opus, but those hedge funds are no longer partying like it's 1999.

[Via All Things Digital]

Wake up, Microsoft! Research firm Piper Jaffray's most recent Teen Survey has concluded that, when it comes to MP3 players, American teenagers only want Apple. The firm's most recent polling of 600 high school students reveals that every teen in the survey who didn't already own a media player wanted an iPod. Of the teens who do have MP3 players, 86-percent have iPods. None expressed any interest in purchasing devices from Microsoft, Sony, Creative, or several other major companies that sell digital media players.

This demographic domination serves as a serious kick in the pants to other mobile device manufacturers, which should be worried about these teens upgrading to iPhones and remaining loyal to Apple in their adult years. The famous Apple iPhone did see a decline, though, when comparing the latest data with Piper Jaffray's previous survey last fall. Only 16-percent of teens plan on buying an iPhone, down from 22-percent. It's the perfect graduation gift idea, parents! Your kids want them; they're just hoping they don't have to pay for them. [From: Piper Jaffray, via AppleInsider and CNET]

No, this isn't an April Fool's joke. President Obama met today at Buckingham Palace with the Queen, and our forward thinking commander-in-chief brought along a little tech for gifting purposes. Obama presented Elizabeth II with an iPod containing video from her 2007 visit to the States. In return, the first family received what is apparently a standard present for visiting dignitaries to the Palace -- a silver-framed photo of the Queen and her husband. At a glance, it seems like Obama has a thing for gadgets (and related media); he recently handed off a set of DVDs featuring classic American films to Prime Minister Gordon Brown... who was unable to play them due to incorrect region encoding. Regardless, the Queen appears pleased with the music player, telling the President during their 25 minute tea that she "Finally has something to listen to [her] Pantera records on."

iTunes, now the world's largest music retailer, is under fire from many competitors, including Amazon's amazonmp3 service, which sells most popular tracks for $.99, but also offers plenty of other tracks at $.79 or less. So how does Apple respond to this pressure? Why, by raising prices on some tracks $.30, naturally.

Starting April 7, Apple will raise the prices of a number of its hottest tracks to $1.29 as part of a new "variable pricing" strategy that will allow music publishers to sell tracks at various price points. Hiking costs probably won't make many fans among consumers but there is at least some good news: Publishers can also sell tracks for less than $.99, which may open the door for smaller artists to get a little more traction in a very busy online store.

What remains to be seen is whether iPod, iPhone, and other iTunes users will stomach the price hike, or just start shopping somewhere else for the same tracks -- especially when "somewhere else" is usually just a few clicks away. [From: Los Angeles Times]

Related Links:

• Apple Adds HD Video Purchases to the iTunes Store
• Legal Music Downloads Growing Faster Than Illegal Ones
• New Songbird Add-On Wiping Out Users' iPods

In our never-ending quest for newer and better Apple accessories, we came across a conceptual design for an iPod cradle that we hope catches the eyes of folks in Cupertino. Conceived by South Korean designer Eun Seok Huh, the design combines an iPod dock with a speaker, a mini-projector, and an alarm clock.

The dock tilts and rotates, allowing for comfortable viewing regardless of your position. The design also incorporates an intriguing plan for a beam projector lens for video viewing and an LCD clock/radio display. The cradle's diminutive stature belies its potential auditory power -- there's a small woofer in there to provide the low-end for Hi-Fi stereo sound.

Boasting a design reminiscent of an old-time microphone, the cradle definitely seems like a fantastic concept, but since it's only in the conceptual stage, functionality remains a question mark. It still looks pretty awesome, though. So, come on, Apple! Make it happen. [From: mymodernmet.com]

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We've talked about the business of iPod repair and how a number of industrious people in NYC opened businesses fixing music players. The trend has spread since and, naturally, one of these repairmen saw fit to use his talents for for more than the joy of helping customers -- he was arrested for tricking Apple into sending him 9,000 Shuffle players.

Nicholas Woodhams, 23, from Kalamazoo, Michigan started a business fixing people's players, but reputedly soon figured out that he could generate bogus serial numbers to get new ones. By typing in a fake serial number on the Apple support Web page, he would trick the company into sending him a replacement for a player that didn't exist. Apple sent him the new model with the expectation that it would receive a faulty one in return (a cross-ship) or, if nothing was received, would charge his credit card. But, Woodhams used fake credit cards so that he got the players for free. He'd then turn around and sell them for $49 apiece, netting a tidy profit.

Woodhams is now charged with fraud and money laundering, and Apple has its own lawsuit pending. We're guessing he won't be able to shuffle out of this one. [From: SFGate]

Related Links:

• This iPod Doctor Makes House Calls
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• Apple's New iPod Shuffle Talks to You

Fans of the open source Songbird media player need to be extremely cautious before downloading Songbird 1.1, the player's latest version. Wired reports that an iPod add-on for the installment can come equipped with a bug capable of corrupting data and erasing music from your iPod. The bug, which only ravages your music if you have your iPod connected to the app, has so far grounded only a minority of Songbird users.

Some of those affected have witnessed their entire libraries vanish, a crushing blow for those of us who ignorantly or lazily refuse to back up our music files. One such victim told Wired that, not only did he lose 60 GB worth of music, but he is now going to have to replace the songs by re-ripping hundreds of CDs. Ouch. As a temporary fix, Songbird has removed the iPod add-on from its recommended list.

According to the Songbird bug trackers, a solution has already been created and will be included with the next update release. Until then, if you've already installed the latest upgrade, go to "Preferences" and disable the iPod add-on. If you need to back up your files, but are unsure of what route to take, check out our handy-dandy guide: 8 Ways to Back-Up Your Computer (and Keep Your Stuff Safe). [From: Wired]

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Sigh, it looks like Apple's habit of squeezing iPod accessory manufacturers for license fees has now extended to freaking headphones -- iLounge is reporting that the new iPod shuffle can only be controlled by headphones with a special hardware authentication chip. That means that third parties will have to pay Apple for the privilege of making shuffle-compatible accessories, and you can bet they'll just pass that cost right on to consumers -- we wouldn't expect any cheap headphone adapters or inexpensive replacement headphones for the littlest iPod. iLounge calls this a "nightmare scenario" for iPod fans, and we're inclined to agree -- it's one thing for Apple to require the Made For iPod certification for accessories that interface with the dock connector, but trying to lock down headphones is a sad new low, and it makes the lack of physical controls on the shuffle seem even more ridiculous. Anyone still planning on buying this thing?

My, my -- now isn't this something? Shortly after narrowly avoiding a dastardly collision with bankruptcy, Sirius XM is looking to connect itself with profitable enterprises in an attempt to build market share and regain interest from budget-conscience consumers. Just weeks after hearing that the sat radio company could be preparing a few Sirius / DirecTV bundles, CFO David Frear has now confirmed on a recent earnings call that the outfit is indeed developing an iPhone / iPod touch app. It's interesting to think that a satellite radio firm could be warming to delivering more content via the internet, but it's the apparent diversion from being a standalone offering that has us even more intrigued. It should be interesting to see how the pricing model works with this forthcoming app -- will users be able to get an iPhone subscription only? Will it be tossed in gratis with traditional subscriptions? So many questions, not enough patience. [Image courtesy of SiriusBuzz]

Want to be taken seriously by your peers? Well, then don't get caught wearing any of this stuff. GeekSugar has compiled a list of gadgety wear and accessories that will almost universally make you look bad, regardless of how geeky your peers are. Here are a few highlights:

• Oakley Thump MP3 Sunglasses - The style is good, but the fold-down headphones make these a bit cheesy and, dare we say it, not quite socially acceptable.
• The Connect-a-Desk - This backwards backpack lets you type on a laptop while walking around. Great for system admins who are constantly walking around the building. Not so great for being seen in public.
• iPod Lederhosen - Okay, if you happen to live or work in an area where lederhosen (traditional German pants) are socially acceptable (which we doubt), don't further push your luck by wearing this model of pants sporting integrated iPod controls. There's nothing trendy, or traditional, about them.
• R2D2 Backpack - This would be undeniably cute for your kids, but, regardless of how badly you want to go back to the time when you were a young Padawan learner, there's just no place for one of these on an adult.
• The iPod Hat - Yes, it's a hat that holds an iPod. Need we say more?

Take heed and avoid these things -- unless you're seeking a gag gift for a friend, that is. If you are looking to embarrass somebody, though, consider this a sort of shopping list, and check out the read link for even more ideas. We also thought we'd add a gallery we created a while back, of other silly tech clothing. [From: GeekSugar]

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Bam, another Apple rumor vindicated. Apple just doubled the capacity of its iPod shuffle to 4GB while ditching the control wheel entirely. The new design keeps the clip and adds VoiceOver -- a new feature that gets around the lack of display by telling you which song is playing and who performs it at the touch of a button on the earbud cable. It'll also call out your playlists and let you navigate to others. No word on which languages are supported. Available in black or silver for $80 and your claim to what Apple calls the "world's smallest music player."

Head to Engadget for a gallery and more specs.

Update: VoiceOver in English, Czech, Dutch, French, German, Greek, Italian, Japanese, Mandarin Chinese, Polish, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish and Turkish.